No short-term solution to economic crisis: Brazil

Rio De Janeiro, July 5 (IANS) There is no short-term solution to the current global economic woe, which is no less serious than the 2008 global financial crisis, said Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega.

“We must be aware that we are going through a very serious crisis, which will not be solved in the short term,” he said Wednesday.

Mantega noted that Brazil was better prepared to deal with the economic crisis than it was in 2008 due to its experience and solid fiscal foundation, reported Xinhua.

He reaffirmed his belief that the Brazilian economy will perform better in the second half of 2012 than in the first, with a projected growth of 3.5 to 4.0 percent.

Second-quarter GDP growth figures have yet to be released, but in the first quarter, the Brazilian economy grew only 0.2 percent quarter-on-quarter.

Meanwhile, its industrial production fell for the third consecutive month in May, but a better performance is forecast for June.

From the beginning of the year, the government has adopted a series of stimulus measures to boost production.